travel writer discovers 'the quirky side of cleveland'

In feature titled “Discovering the quirky side of Cleveland,” travel writer Katherine Calos of the Richmond Times-Dispatch focuses on the less conventional side of some Cleveland hotspots.

“You really know a city when you know its quirks. So, let’s get to know Cleveland,” she leads off.

“Where else would you find the world’s largest chandelier hanging over a city street, Froot Loops on hot dogs, religious statues lovingly restored by a makeup artist, a leg lamp in the Christmas house that made it famous, a portrait featuring eye protection from whale-oil lamps and a museum that’s enshrined the remains of a disc jockey?”

Highlighted for inclusion are:

The Happy Dog: “Chili cheese dogs seem a little lame when compared with the Mobile Home-Wrecker, the Sunday Night Special, the 1:45 AM Special and East Meets West -- a few of the suggestions for combining the 50 available toppings for the $5 hot dogs.”

The Playhouse Square Chandelier: “The world’s largest outdoor chandelier, according to the Guinness World Records, became the centerpiece of Cleveland’s theater district in May. It’s already become an icon for Playhouse Square.”

A Christmas Story House: “If you’ve ever marveled at the supreme tackiness of the leg lamp in the 1983 movie “A Christmas Story,” you’ll love it in its natural setting.”

Cleveland Museum of Art: “Put on your coolest shades for a ‘selfie’ with Nathaniel Olds. That’s what he did when he sat for a portrait in 1837. His fashionable green-tinted eyeglasses offered protection from the bright light of Argand lamps, which produced about 10 times as much light as other whale-oil lamps.”